Dallas needs a little more depth along the front line to start the season — Dirk Nowitzki is the star, and they also have Brandan Wright, Samuel Dalembert and Jae Crowder. Dallas has been in the mix to add Greg Oden but they are not considered favorites to land him.

So now it looks like they may steal a Spur to fill out that roster spot.

They are in negotiations with DeJuan Blair, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.

While Blair is a restricted free agent it is not expected the Spurs will match an offer for him.

This would be a good pickup for Dallas — Blair fell out of the Spurs rotation last season but when he got on the floor he played fairly. Blair shot 52.4 percent and had a PER of 14.6, right at the league average last season.

The Wizards and Bulls were the other teams tied to Blair. He was looking for a multi-year deal but I’m not sure that’s what the Mavericks (who are trying to rebuild through free agency) are offering.